Volume 9, Issue 1 (6-2026)                   KCR 2026, 9(1): 26-36 | Back to browse issues page


XML Persian Abstract Print


Download citation:
BibTeX | RIS | EndNote | Medlars | ProCite | Reference Manager | RefWorks
Send citation to:

Noghani S. Application of Sol-Gel Technology in the Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Heritage. KCR 2026; 9 (1) :26-36
URL: http://journal.richt.ir/kcr/article-1-330-en.html
Iran University of Art
Abstract:   (871 Views)
In recent decades, sol-gel technology has attracted considerable attention in the conservation and restoration of cultural heritage as a nanotechnology-based approach. Features such as the production of organic-inorganic nanocomposites, suitable penetration into porous substrates, formation of thin protective coatings, and resistance to moisture and ultraviolet radiation have expanded its applications in conservation studies. This review examines the capabilities and limitations of sol-gel technology in stone consolidation, protective coatings for historical materials, and environmental monitoring sensors. The reviewed studies indicate that alkoxysilane-based compounds improve the structural cohesion of historical stones and reduce moisture penetration. In addition, sol-gel coatings have shown promising results in protecting metals, glass, tiles, and paper against corrosion, weathering, and microbial growth. Sol-gel-based sensors have also been applied for monitoring humidity, acidity, pollutants, and light in museum environments. Despite these advances, further long-term studies remain necessary.

 
Full-Text [PDF 199 kb]   (202 Downloads)    
Type of Study: Review Article | Subject: Application of modern sciences, technologies, equipment, materials and methods
Received: 2025/10/17 | Accepted: 2026/06/20 | Published: 2026/08/10

References
1. Alkaya, E. (2013). Diffusion of sustainable production approach into Turkish manufacturing industry: Pilot applications and sectoral assessments (Doctoral dissertation, Middle East Technical University, Turkey).
2. Andriulo, F., Vespignani, L., Steindal, C. C., Bortolini, M., & De Ferri, L. (2022). Evaluation of sol-gel hybrid nanocomposites for dry medieval wood. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 56, 96–107.
3. Bacci, M., Cucci, C., Mencaglia, A. A., & Mignani, A. G. (2008). Innovative sensors for environmental monitoring in museums. Sensors, 8(3), 1984–2005. https://doi.org/10.3390/s8031984
4. Baglioni, M., Poggi, G., Chelazzi, D., & Baglioni, P. (2021). Advanced materials in cultural heritage conservation. Molecules, 26(13), 3967.
5. Baglioni, P., Dei, L., Carretti, E., & Giorgi, R. (2009). Gels for the conservation of cultural heritage. Langmuir, 25(15), 8373–8374.
6. Bertoncello, R., Milanese, L., Dran, J. C., Bouquillon, A., & Sada, C. (2006). Sol–gel deposition of silica films on silicate glasses: Influence of the presence of lead in the glass or in precursor solutions. Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids, 352(4), 315–321.
7. Bertoncello, R., Milanese, L., Negro, R., Saragoni, L., & Barison, S. (2003). Sol–gel preparation of non-hygroscopic siliceous thin films enriched with alkaline-earth ions. Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids, 324(1–2), 73–78.
8. Bescher, E. P., & Mackenzie, J. D. (2003). Sol-gel coatings for the protection of brass and bronze. Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, 26(1–3), 1223–1226.
9. Bescher, E. P., & Mackenzie, J. D. (2017). Sol–gel materials for art conservation. In Handbook of Sol-Gel Science and Technology. Springer International Publishing.
10. Bianco, B. D., & Bertoncello, R. (2008). Sol–gel silica coatings for the protection of cultural heritage glass. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B, 266(10), 2358–2362.
11. Blohowiak, K. Y., Anderson, R. A., & Stephenson, R. R. (2003). Sol-gel technology for surface preparation of metal alloys for adhesive bonding and sealing operations.
12. Bokov, D., Turki Jalil, A., Chupradit, S., Suksatan, W., Javed Ansari, M., Shewael, I. H., ... & Kianfar, E. (2021). Nanomaterial by sol-gel method: Synthesis and application. Advances in Materials Science and Engineering, 2021(1), 5102014.
13. Brinker, C. J. (1988). Hydrolysis and condensation of silicates: Effects on structure. Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids, 100, 31–50.
14. Brinker, C. J., Ashley, C. S., Sellinger, A. S., Cygan, R. T., Nagy, K. L., Assink, R., Alam, T., Rao, S., Prabaker, S., & Scotto, C. S. (1998). Sol-gel preservation of mankind’s cultural heritage in objects constructed of stones.
15. Brinker, C. J., & Hurd, A. J. (1994). Fundamentals of sol-gel dip-coating. Journal de Physique III, 4, 1231–1242.
16. Brus, J., & Kotlík, P. (1996). Cracking of organosilicone stone consolidants in gel form. Studies in Conservation, 41(1), 55–59.
17. Carmona, N., Herrero, E., Llopis, J., & Villegas, M. A. (2007). Chemical sol–gel-based sensors for evaluation of environmental humidity. Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 126(2), 455–460.
18. Carmona, N., Herrero, E., Villegas, M. A., & Llopis, J. (2008). Environmental optical sol-gel sensors for preventive conservation of cultural heritage. In Lasers in the Conservation of Artworks: Proceedings of the International Conference LACONA VII (p. 483). CRC Press.
19. Carmona, N., Wittstadt, K., & Römich, H. (2009). Consolidation of paint on stained glass windows: Comparative study and new approaches. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 10, 403–409.
20. Carmona-Quiroga, P. M., Martínez-Ramírez, S., Sánchez-Cortés, S., Oujja, M., Castillejo, M., & Blanco-Varela, M. T. (2010). Effectiveness of antigraffiti treatments in connection with penetration depth determined by different techniques. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 11, 297–303.
21. Centenaro, S., Cattaruzza, E., Glisenti, A., Puppulin, L., Franceschin, G., & Traviglia, A. (2025). Sol–gel thin films for the protection of ancient glass artifacts: A performance comparison between inorganic and hybrid silica compositions. Advanced Materials Interfaces, 12(12), 2500061.
22. Coradin, T. (2020). Sol-gel process, structure, and properties. In G. Thouand (Ed.), Handbook of Cell Biosensors. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47405-2_141-1
23. Coutinho, M. L., Veiga, J. P., Macedo, M. F., & Miller, A. Z. (2020). Testing the feasibility of titanium dioxide sol-gel coatings on Portuguese glazed tiles to prevent biological colonization. Coatings, 10(12), 1169.
24. De Ferri, L., Lottici, P. P., Lorenzi, A., Montenero, A., & Vezzalini, G. (2013). Hybrid sol–gel based coatings for the protection of historical window glass. Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, 66(2), 253–263.
25. De Ferri, L., Lottici, P. P., Lorenzic, A., Montenero, A., & Salvioli-Mariani, E. (2011). Study of silica nanoparticles–polysiloxane hydrophobic treatments for stone-based monument protection. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 12(4), 356–363.
26. Dimitriev, Y., Ivanova, Y., & Iordanova, R. (2008). History of sol-gel science and technology. Journal of the University of Chemical Technology and Metallurgy, 43(2), 181–192.
27. Ershad-Langroudi, A., & Rahimi, A. (2009). Synthesis and characterisation of nano silica-based coatings for protection of antique articles. International Journal of Nanotechnology, 6(10–11), 915–925.
28. Fernández-Hernán, J. P., Torres, B., López, A. J., & Rams, J. (2022). The role of the sol-gel synthesis process in the biomedical field and its use to enhance the performance of bioabsorbable magnesium implants. Gels, 8(7), 426. https://doi.org/10.3390/gels8070426
29. Giorgi, R., Baglioni, M., Berti, D., & Baglioni, P. (2010). New methodologies for the conservation of cultural heritage: Micellar solutions, microemulsions, and hydroxide nanoparticles. Accounts of Chemical Research, 43(6), 695–704.
30. Gupta, S. P. (2011). Consolidation of historic porous stone by impregnation with silica acid esters. World Journal of Science and Technology, 1(3), 17–21.
31. Hadadi-Asl, V., & Karimkhani, V. (2007). A primer on the application of nanotechnology in polymers. Tehran: Research & Technology Petrochemical Company. (In Persian)
32. Herrero, E., Carmona, N., Llopis, J., & Villegas, M. A. (2007). Sensitive glasslike sol–gel materials suitable for environmental light sensors. Journal of the European Ceramic Society, 27(16), 4589–4594.
33. Kawashita, M., Tsuneyama, S., Miyaji, F., Kokubo, T., Kozuka, H., & Yamamoto, K. (2000). Antibacterial silver-containing silica glass prepared by sol-gel method. Biomaterials, 21, 393–398.
34. Kim, E. K., Won, J., Do, J.-Y., Kim, S. D., & Kang, Y. S. (2009). Effects of silica nanoparticle and GPTMS addition on TEOS-based stone consolidants. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 10, 214–221.
35. Kiuberis, J., Tautkus, S., Kazlauskas, R., Pakutinskiene, I., & Kareiva, A. (2005). Protective coating for paper: New development and analytical characterization. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 6(3), 245–251.
36. Kudryavtsev, P., & Figovsky, O. (2015). Nanocomposite organomineral hybrid materials. Scientific Technological Advantages.
37. Llorente-Alonso, A., Peña-Poza, J., Domínguez, J. F., Gil, C., García-Heras, M., & Villegas, M. A. (2013). Evaluation of environmental conditions of the Museo del Ejército (Toledo, Spain) by means of sol-gel optical sensors. Science and Technology for the Conservation of Cultural Heritage, 15–19.
38. Mackenzie, J. D., & Bescher, E. P. (2000). Physical properties of sol-gel coatings. Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, 19, 23–29.
39. Manoudis, P. N., Karapanagiotis, I., Tsakalof, A., Zuburtikudis, I., Kolinkeová, B., & Panayiotou, C. (2009). Superhydrophobic films for the protection of outdoor cultural heritage assets. Applied Physics A: Materials Science & Processing, 97(2), 351–360.
40. Metroke, T. L., Parkhill, R. L., & Knobbe, E. T. (2001). Passivation of metal alloys using sol–gel derived materials: A review. Progress in Organic Coatings, 41(4), 233–238.
41. Miliani, C., Velo-Simpson, M. L., & Scherer, G. W. (2007). Particle-modified consolidants: A study on the effect of particles on sol-gel properties and consolidation effectiveness. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 8, 1–6.
42. Nikkola, J., Mannila, J., Mahlberg, R., Siivinen, J., Kolari, M., & Mahiout, A. (2008). Sol-gel based protective coatings for copper products. Surface Coatings Technology.
43. Ponamoreva, O. N., Lavrova, D. G., Kamanina, O. A., Rybochkin, P. V., Machulin, A. V., & Alferov, V. A. (2019). Biohybrid of methylotrophic yeast and organically modified silica gels from sol–gel chemistry of tetraethoxysilane and dimethyldiethoxysilane. Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, 92(2), 359–366.
44. Salazar-Hernández, C., Salazar-Hernández, M., & Mendoza-Miranda, J. M. (2023). The sol–gel process applied in stone conservation. Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, 106(2), 495–517.
45. Schiavon, G. (2000). Sol-gel derived nanocomposites: Synthesis, spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (Doctoral dissertation, Technische Universität München, Germany).
46. Sfameni, S., Rando, G., & Plutino, M. R. (2023). Perspective chapter: Functional sol-gel based coatings for innovative and sustainable applications. In Sol-Gel Method: Recent Advances. IntechOpen.
47. Shilova, O. A., Khamova, T. V., Vlasov, D. Y., Ryabusheva, Y., Mikhal’chuk, V. M., Frank-Kamenetskaya, O. V., Marygin, A. M., & Dolmatov, V. Y. (2009). Sol-gel synthesis and investigation of nanocomposite protective biostable coatings. Retrieved August 20, 2011, from http://printfu.org/biostable
48. Tambe, C. (2016). Process and application development of biobased materials: Silylated natural oils and thermosets from fumaric acid (Doctoral dissertation, Michigan State University). https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.17861.65769
49. Trovato, V., Rosace, G., Colleoni, C., Sfameni, S., Migani, V., & Plutino, M. R. (2020). Sol-gel based coatings for the protection of cultural heritage textiles. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (Vol. 777, No. 1, p. 012007). IOP Publishing.
50. Tulliani, J.-M., Formia, A., & Marco-Sangermano. (2011). Organic-inorganic material for the consolidation of plaster. Journal of Cultural Heritage.
51. Wang, D., & Bierwagen, G. P. (2009). Sol–gel coatings on metals for corrosion protection. Progress in Organic Coatings, 64(4), 327–338.
52. Wheeler, G. (2005). Alkoxysilans and the consolidation of stones. Los Angeles: The Getty Conservation Institute.
53. Wheeler, G., Méndez-Vivar, J., & Fleming, S. (2003). The use of modified Zr-n-propoxide in the consolidation of calcite: A preliminary study focused on the conservation of cultural heritage. Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, 26, 1233–1237
54. Zárraga, R., Cervantes, J., Salazar-Hernandez, C., & Wheeler, G. (2010). Effect of the addition of hydroxyl-terminated polydimethylsiloxane to TEOS-based stone consolidants. Journal of Cultural Heritage, 11, 138–144.
55. Zucchi, F. (2013). Sol-gel coatings for the preservation of metallic heritage artefacts. In Corrosion and Conservation of Cultural Heritage Metallic Artefacts (pp. 540–551). Woodhead Publishing.

Add your comments about this article : Your username or Email:
CAPTCHA

Send email to the article author


Rights and permissions
Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.